Ford Expands Takata Airbag Recall

According to reports, Ford Motor Co. has announced that they will expand their recall for vehicles equipped with potentially defective airbags manufactured by Takata to cover an additional 447,310 vehicles.

About the Recall Expansion

Ford’s announcement comes after continued pressure from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), urging all automakers to issue nationwide recalls for vehicles equipped with faulty Takata airbags that could explode upon deployment.

The expansion brings the total number of vehicles recalled by Ford to 502,489 – more than 20 million vehicles have been recalled by automakers worldwide.

Recall reports indicate that the airbags may deploy with excess force, causing the airbags to rupture. When this occurs, metal shards and pieces of plastic are ejected through vehicle cabins.

Takata has continued to claim that the airbag recalls should be limited to certain regions, alleging the issue is linked to high humidity; however, NHTSA has cited instances in which involved vehicles in less humid regions, including north California and Oklahoma.

So far the airbags have been linked to 5 deaths and more than 100 injuries.